Social Issues Increasingly Impacting Forest Industry

Geneva, 12 June 2007 - As social issues expand on the global sustainable development agenda, they increasingly impact the forestry and forest products industry, going far beyond sustainable forest standards and certification.

The increasing assertiveness and activism of local communities and indigenous peoples groups is evident. International companies – especially those operating or investing in emerging and developing economies – need to be proactive and responsive in addressing local social equity and social development needs.

The development of mutually beneficial local partnerships with local stakeholders can provide an effective approach to dealing with such concerns.

As this agenda evolves, these issues are becoming a more significant focus of the Sustainable Forest Products Industry (SFPI) working group.

A report released in 2004 by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) on progress achieved against the key paper industry sustainability challenges outlined in the Towards a Sustainable Paper Cycle Report (1996 WBCSD) confirmed that corporate social responsibility programs are becoming a permanent and more prominent feature of the forest industry business.

Commercial forestry as a poverty alleviation strategy in developing counties is a theme under active discussion and debate by key stakeholders, including SFPI companies, within The Forests Dialogue (TFD) process.

A scoping dialogue was held in South Africa in June 2006, a second in Indonesia in March 2007, and a third dialogue is planned for Bolivia in September 2007 – all investigating appropriated operational models that maximize local development benefits, including skilled employment, income diversification and infrastructure.

The need to increase social benefits associated with the development of large scale intensively managed planted forests (IMPF) – through grower schemes for instance – has also been articulated within a parallel TFD process looking at IMPFs in southern China (April 2006) and Indonesia (March 2007; read the summary 70 kb).

Key TFD findings on social issues to date include:

• Commercial forestry has real potential to produce wealth for poor communities in emerging and developing economies
  
  
• Seeking an appropriate balance between profit optimization and equitable benefit sharing is important in designing pro-poor commercial projects
  
  
• Enabling conditions and factors that can steer commercial forestry towards poverty reduction include:
  • Specialist development policies and institutions (e.g., microfinancing)
  • Well-organized social and labor movements
  • Focus on long-term, local partnerships
  • Effective company and stakeholder leadership and engagement
    
    
• Lack of local capacity to enter into effective relationships with commercial operators or government institutions is a major barrier for poor urban and rural communities

Lastly, WBCSD member companies that are members of the SFPI working group have committed to address and report progress on the following social equity and social development issues under several Membership Principles & Responsibilities:

• Management and Governance
  • Work against corruption and illegal practices in all their forms
    
    
• Resource Management
  • Respect lawful access and tenure rights of indigenous peoples and community members
  • Proactively seek to resolve any potential land disputes through dialogue, independent arbitration or the legal systems
    
    
• Health and Safety
  • Strive for continuous improvement in health and safety and report accidents and injuries in the workplace
    
    
• Community Well-being & Stakeholder Engagement
  • Contribute to economic health, employment and community service in the communities in which we operate
  • Engage in, listen to and respond to local sustainability expectations and concerns relating to our operations
    
    
• Human Rights and Labor Standards
  • Respect all national laws for human rights and labor standards and, where these are lacking, use internationally agreed standards.

More information

• WBCSD on forestry
• James Griffths, Project Director, +41 22 839 3114

• Membership Principles for Sustainable Forest Product Companies ( 1.2 MB)

Author WBCSD Publication Date 12 Jun 2007 Document Type WBCSD news Issue/Topic Business Role/CSR Forest Products Source WBCSD Include In RSS WBCSD News & Updates		1.2 MB